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Busted From The Main Event…
I am out of the 2009 $10k Buyin World Series Of Poker Main Event. It sucks. I actually caught the first plane back with my buddies Steve and Adam and am writing this blog from Florida. Whenever I lose the Main Event I feel like there’s no point for me to be out there anymore. It’s the last hoo-rah of the WSOP and it’s a horrible feeling losing. Hopefully one year I won’t have to feel the pain of losing and can make a deep run in that monster of a tournament.
My Day 2 starting table was pretty good. I thought it would be tougher after looking up some of the players at the table but it wasn’t that bad. I played one really sick hand which I am so disturbed about I will talk about in a little bit.
I went into day 2 with 32k in chips. I had two big stacks to my right and a big stack to my left. Some of the people at the table had information about them available on the Internet so I googled all their names and tried to know a little bit about my opponents before I played. The guy to my left was dressed in Full Tilt gear and seemed like an Internet player.
The first hand I played was actually five hands into the tournament. It folded to me on the button and I looked down at A9o. The blinds were 250/500/50a and I made it 1300 on the button. The small blind Internet kid made it 3400. I expected something like this to happen to me given stack sizes and I reraised to 7800 and he mucked. I think I might of had to call a shove if he ended up shoving. It would of been a pretty sick shove I don’t think a lot of people are capable of shoving too light in that scenario. I showed him my hand and told him I wasn’t in the mood to mess around and get bullied. He didn’t three bet me too much more throughout the day, which worked out for me.
The second hand I played I raised to 1300 on the hijack with A3ss and the small blind called. The flop came 789s and we both checked. The turn was the 7s and he bet 1300. I called. The river came the Ts making a one card straight. He checked to me, I fired 3600 and he called. He mucked when he saw my flush and I was up to a nice start to 42k.
Middle position player makes it 1400 and I call in the small blind with 22. The flop comes A34r and I lead into the raiser for 1800. He calls and the turn is the 5s. Putting two spades up. I probably should have checked here but given our stack sizes I thought the turn was a great card for him to try to bluff me off if I bet it. I bet 4650 and he mucked. I just thought too deep on the turn here and it’s most likely an easy check raise. Up to 45k.
Here’s the sickest hand of the tournament I played yesterday and after rethinking this hand I am VERY VERY VERY upset with not going through with my read for various reasons. The guy two to my right raised to 1650 (He had been active and was from Daytona Beach with a Kennel Club shirt on and some other logos from Florida related businesses. He was in lots of pots and if I had more information that I later gathered about him this hand would of been a lot easier.) I am down to about 39k and he makes it 1650 on the hijack. I have AQo on the button and decide to just call. My hand has a ton of value and this guy most likely mucks to a 3bet. I’d rather try to chip up in this spot and play a pot vs. this guy in position. The flop comes 662r. He bets 2600. I made it 4500 more, to 7100. He thinks for about 20-30 seconds and makes it 11k more. I have 29k behind, meaning I can reshove for 18k on top of his 11k. I literally thought about this hand for 2-3 minutes. This bet is either a 6 or nothing. Let me explain why I think this. I don’t think this certain player is on the level to induce a shove with a hand like JJ-AA or even 99 etc. He is definitely never trying to induce a shove with apparently no fold equity. He is basically just repping a 6. I also don’t feel that he would play a 6 like this. He’s leaving himself an out in case I actually have a hand where he can fold if I do happen to move all in. I knew this at the time, thought forever, and went against my instincts and mucked. Before I mucked I asked him if he had anything, because I was about 95% sure he didn’t, and then I mucked. He turned over T7hh and took the pot. Some of the guys were asking if I had JJ or QQ since I thought so long but I think my hand is irrelevant there for the most part. AQ is just the same as JJ and QQ there and I’m really kicking myself for not taking my play to the next level on that particular hand.
I raised with J9ss the small blind called. Flop came T97s and I bet 1825 and sb calls. Turn is 5d we check check, river is Ac he checks to me. This guy was really tight and I didn’t think I had good showdown value here so I decided to bluff the river and bet 4100. He instantly shoved, ouch, and I mucked. He showed AA and I was now down to 21k on the short stack again.
I blinded down to 14k and the last hand before dinner break I woke up with AKdd in 3rd position. I made it 1400 and the Internet kid made it 3900. I shoved and he called with QQ. Board runs out T94d5d … Kc on the river and I double up to about 30k before going into 400/800/100a.
I try to play a couple pots and get blinded down to 24k. UTG makes it 2800 (big raise for second time in a row UTG) and the small blind reraised to 14k. I peeled AKo in the big blind and thought for a little bit and decided to muck. I think it’s a pretty easy muck. The small blind only had 11k behind and both ranges are super strong here. I am only chopping with the small blind’s range here and QQ is probably in there like 10% too. So at best I’m really up against AK for the most part. UTG decided to gamble and puts him all in with 99. The small blind had AK and 99 holds.
The guy who ended up busting me 4bet button shoved AJo against a small blind raise who had QQ and spiked an ace on the river. He played pretty solid and good all day but he seemed to get a little more aggressive when the guy to his left who was 3betting him got eliminated. It folded to him on the cutoff, he made it 2200 and I shoved in 15k more in the sb with AJo. He insta mucked and I was back up to 21k. He has now raised the last like 2/4 3/4 pots and he raises UTG to 2200. It folds to me in middle position and I look down at AQhh. I have about 19k total. I hate shoving AQ into UTG raises. I just hate it. This guy played pretty good for the most part and I thought about just calling. Folding might be the best play here but I went against what I normally do and I decided to jam. I don’t know if I jammed because I was frustrated being card dead, or because the blinds were going to 500/1k/100a in 10 minutes or what. But I shoved, he called with QQ and I lost. I don’t completely hate my play but it’s tough. Oh well.
After I busted the Main I got on the first flight out of Vegas which left at 11:30pm (I busted around 8pm) and I made it to Florida at 7:30am. I’m not sure what’s on the agenda for me next. Probably back to online poker and some poker around Florida. I probably about broke even for the trip to Vegas which isn’t bad. Breaking even during the WSOP is always a good thing and I can’t complain. I feel like I’m really playing good poker but I still have a lot to learn and adapt to. Hopefully I can continue working on my game and I know good things are to come in the future.
Good luck to all my friends still out in Vegas and in the Main Event.
Dinner Break Day 2…
I’m on dinner break right now and I just doubled up to 30k. I had 14k at 300/600/75ante and raised to 1400 in 2nd position with AKdd. The guy to my left made it like 3900 or something (I didn’t even bother to look cause I knew I was all in lol) and it folded back to me and I shoved. He called and had QQ. The flop came T9d45d and I rivered the King of clubs to double up to almost 30k. That was the hand right before the dinner break.
I started with 32k today and I was up to 45k early and got bluffed out of a big pot where I almost shoved it in and followed my read but I didnt. I will talk more about everything later but I was just giving a quick update. The blinds are going to be 400/800/100ante and the average stack is probably 75k or so. I have a lot of catching up to do but I will be alright =)
Update after I finish playing Day 2.
Advancing To Day Two (Edited)…
I survived day one of the $10k Buyin Main Event at the WSOP. I was up to 43k early and then down to 16k. I had the best table ever to start at. People were going nuts the whole time playing huge pots and putting so much money in every pot. I made some hands early to get up to 43k then I couldn’t hit anything. Some people at my table were calling stations, some were just too passive, and some were just funny. One guy three to my left all day who ended up with 140k played about 70% of pots and just made the nuts with any two cards. He never folded a 3bet and was in every pot. He gave me the most trouble because he was so horrible.
The first decent pot I played was against the above guy, lets name him No Fold Joe. I raised the cutoff to 250 at 50/100 with QJo he defended his big blind. The flop came 894r I fired 250 he calls. Turn is T he checks I bet 725 he calls. River J and he bets 1500 and I call he has T5o LOL and I am up to 33k early.
I don’t feel like writing all the hands right now but that’s how my table was. This guy was in every hand and some other people were just crazy. I somehow went up and down and ended up with 32.4k when the average is probably 40k or so. I’ll write more tomorrow I’m too tired, Goodnight.
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Here’s some more hands and information from yesterday. This is definitely one of the craziest hands I played and some might even say I played it bad. I’m not sure either and definitely want some input on this hand.
UTG was pretty active and he makes it 300 in the first level of play. I call in 3rd position with AcAd. Everyone else mucks. The flop comes J9s3s and he bets 800 into about a 750 pot. This was the norm at the table also. I made it 2250. He didn’t think very long and he made it 7k. This line is pretty sick and I went into the tank for a couple minutes. I moved all in and he mucked. I was now up to 40.2k. I can explain my process in this hand later but I’d like to hear some comments from people before I do that.
Another guy who was in every pot early makes it 5x preflop to 500 and I call on the cutoff with 88. It comes 847dd and he chk calls 800. The turn is the Kh and he leads into me for 2k. He had taken these lines a lot and I made it 5700. He mucks and I’m at 43k.
I blind down to 36/37k and play this stupid pot. The cutoff makes it 700 at 100/200 and I looked down at Ac2s in the small blind. I decided to 3bet here because this guy was really active in late position and I wanted to start 3betting a little bit light before the antes kicked in. I made it 2200 and he called quickly. The flop came T5cc4 and I flopped a gutterball and the nut flush blocker. I bet 3300 and he called. The turn was the Qs and I decided to check here. He checked back and I was pretty sure he was weak at this point. His whole demeanor and everything I thought he might of floated the flop with like 66 or something. The river was the Jc and I tanked for a little and decided to fire 7700 to pick up the money out there. He snap called me and tabled AK. Pretty nasty float he did on the flop but oh well. I made a stupid unnecessary play and now I am down to 23k. Crap.
I tried not to panic and regained my composure during break. My table was so amazing I was so frustrated watching these guys play huge pots and just being clueless in some spots. I decided to tighten up a lot since I had this No Fold Joe three to my left playing every hand and never folding ever ever ever.
I raise to 800 UTG with AKo at 150/300. The cutoff/button and big blind call. The flop comes AKTr and the big blind leads for the pot 2600. This guy got into the main on a $5 satellite from 888 poker and he was absolutely wild. He was 5xing it preflop and calling with AT on T9JQ boards and stuff. I definitely thought this guy would bet AT/KT/AQ here like this and I decided to just call. The other two folded and the turn came a 5. He fired out 10k and I had 16k behind. I tanked for a couple minutes and decided to give up the pot. I talked to him a little and got a read and he seemed like he had it. I showed my AKo and he ended up showing me QJo. So I made a good fold but it still hurts. Being down to 16k I felt in bad shape but didn’t worry.
I raise JJ black to 800 and get 3 callers. The flop comes K72ss and we all check. Turn is 9c and the sb bets 1600. I called, river 9h and we both check and I beat his A8ss. Back to 20k.
The very last hand before break No Fold Joe limps 2nd position and it folds to me in the small blind with QQ. This guy has never folded in his life to any preflop action and I raise it to 1200. He calls. The flop comes 234r and I bet 1600. He calls. The turn is the 5 and I check and he checks. The river is the 7 and I check and he checks. He tables J7dd like he has the nuts and I show my QQ. What is this guy doing? Look at his flop call. This is how he was playing all day and it was extremely annoying. I can’t believe this guy got up to 140k. He played another hand with me earlier where I raised 9Tdd and he called on the button. It came AQ6 and I cbet and he thought for like 45 seconds and then mucked 35 of hearts and said there isn’t much I could hit to catch up! But the fact that he is thinking of calling flops like this with backdoor draws and pair draws is just crazy.
Tight guy makes it 1k at 150/300 cutoff calls, button calls, I call in the bb with J9ss. The flop comes K44ss and it checks to the button who bets 2k. I call. Everyone else folds. The turn is the Qh and we both check. River comes 5c and I bet 6400 and she mucks and I am now back up to 31k. She seemed uninterested on river I didn’t think she had QK or anything. I thought maybe a hand like JJ-66 she was really passive.
Those are about all the hands I wrote down. I didn’t play many hands in the later levels of the tournament yesterday. I did play another hand against NO FOLD JOE when I raised TT utg to 1050 and he 3bet me in middle position to 3600. I peeled against him and definitely thought I could have the best hand preflop. He 3bet earlier in the day real small with KK and I felt like his 3x was lighter and he just thought I was super tight because he commented on this lady who busted out at our table for “playing way too tight.” This guy was limping 24o on the button and tank mucking to a 6x preflop raise and showing his hand saying they made it too much for him to call. This guy was an animal I swear. Anyways, he 3bets me and I almost 4bet reraised but just called. The flop came K64r and I checked and he bet 6500. He loved this flop I could tell and I mucked. I thought about it for a minute though and he said “GOOD FOLD. I had a set.” So at first I assumed he had KK then he said he had 66. LOL Wowowowowow. This guy must of just outplayed me all day. I really didnt get anything going or hit any hands the whole second half of the day. I raised NO FOLD JOE’s big blind from the cutoff with AQo and he called me with Q3ss and we checked it down and it ran out KT39T and he won that pot but this is how this guy was playing. Pretty frustrating I couldn’t get any chips from this guy. He was firing flushes on paired boards and firing two pair on straight/flush boards like he had the nuts.
Gotta love the main event. Hopefully my Day 2 table can be just as good and I can get something going. I really couldn’t of asked for a better table today. Everyone started out so crazy and playing huge pots. When we busted a couple (I think we lost 3/4 players from the original table) people started tightening up. The 5x $5 satty winner tightened up A LOT and so did some other players when Day 2 was approaching.
I’ll try to get some opinions about this one hand I played and hopefully I can continue with the Main Event and not make anymore mistakes.
Main Event Tomorrow…
Tomorrow I play the Main Event $10k Buy-in World Series of Poker tournament. About to go to sleep but I will keep the blog updated for my deep run in the Main. Let everyone know how tomorrow goes when I am finished playing. Goodnight.
5k Chip On the Ground/Bellagio $1590…
Yesterday I played the Bellagio $1590 tournament. Early on I played a pot vs. the most active and loose guy at the table. He raised the hijack and I called on the button with 9To. It was 50/100 and he made it 300. The flop came T85h and he bet 600. I called. Turn was 8h and he checked and I checked, river was a 9 and he bet 1k and I called. He mucked and I mucked my hand.
Now here is where the most interesting part of my day happens. The seat to my right wasn’t filled yet and a player came and put his bag/man purse/etc down on the chair. The strap was around the chair and the bag sort of fell on the floor. He walked away to talk to some floor person on stage in the Fontana Room and a minute later I noticed what I thought was a quarter on the floor near his seat. I looked down again and saw some foreign coins. I then saw a Bellagio Flag (5k chip) directly under his seat with the assorted coins. So here I am looking at a 5k chip under his chair, most likely out of the view of the Bellagio cameras. I thought for a second and called a floor person over and told them what happened. The guy had just walked away moments before and the floor person knew which player it was because she had just seated him. I didn’t want to touch the money and be accused of taking something so I decided to just call the floor and let them handle it. She picked up the money and went and grabbed the guy. He came back to the table and made sure the rest of his money was in his bag and then sat down to play in the tournament. He asked if it was me who saw the chip and I said yes and he gave me a $100 Bellagio chip. It was a very nice gesture of him considering I was just doing the right thing.
The very next hand I looked down at AA (KARMA???) and made it 250. An old guy in late position made it 750 and it folded back to me. I like to use my perceived image in this spot and made a 4bet to 2250. He called and the flop came 677. I checked and he bet 3k with about 4-5k behind. I moved all in and he folded without too much thought. I was immediately up to about 17k from my original 10k starting stack.
Shortly after I got moved to a new table. The second hand at the new table I make it 250 with 88 on the button and an old guy from Italy made it 2k from the small blind. I know I’m most likely up against AK and racing here but I mucked.
I was playing pretty tight at the new table and at 100/200/25a a real active guy in 2nd position makes it 500. He gets 4 callers and I look down at A8o in the small blind. I decide this is a perfect spot to squeeze and make it 2800. The only guy I’m really worried about is the 2nd flat caller who was this guy who wanted to try to outplay me in a couple pots by showing me a bluff earlier when I had nothing anyways. He ends up moving all in for 5k total and I am priced in to call. He has QQ and he holds and I’m down to 12k now.
I was really card dead the whole time at this table, missing flops and people just calling my cbets and I hardly won any pots. I ended up blinding down to about 8k at 200/400/25a when the hijack (a very loose and spewy player) made it 1100. I shoved 7k more from the small blind with 55 and he called with ATo. He won the flip and I was out. So I guess the karma from returning the 5k chip didn’t work out after all but maybe it will carry over to the Main Event. Why would I want to win a couple hundred grand when I can save all my deep run/huge tournament score for the biggest tournament in the world!?!?!
Aside from that today I am going to head over to the Rio to play some sngs and then I will get ready to play the Main Event on Sunday probably. I’m not sure what day is best to play but that’s when I probably will play. Talk to you guys later.
Missing Tournaments..
I went to the Bellagio today to play their daily 1k tournament at 2pm. When I got there a tournament was already running and deep into it. Apparently they started their poker tournament series today which started at noon. I really was looking forward to playing a nice tournament today so that was pretty frustrating. I’ve gone over to the Bellagio before to play a week ago and they only had 50 people in their daily so I skipped that time too.
This week is like limbo week because the WSOP is gearing up for the Main Event and just running a bunch of satellites. It seems like the Bellagio tournaments will have good turnouts. There were like 325 people registered for the tournament when I got to the Bellagio today. I am assuming people will be playing there and there still is the Venetian as well.
I’m not sure which day I will play the Main Event yet. Guess I will just wait and see. Other than that I am just playing online for the night. I busted the 100r on stars and the 300NL so far. I am still in the 6max 100r on FTP and deep in the 163 on FTP. Getting close to the money in the 163 so maybe I can get hot in that. I’ll keep the blog updated with what’s going on in the next couple days.
$1500s At The WSOP…
I played the $1500 NLH WSOP Event on Saturday and it started out really good. My table was active and loose and I was 3betting early picking up some hands. In the first level of play at 25/50 I had chipped up to about 5k from the 4.5k starting stack and a guy limped the hijack. I raised with JTo on the cutoff and fold after the small blind led the flop into me.
The very next hand the same guy limps and I looked down at two black kings. I made the same 175 preflop raise. The cutoff and button both called and the small blind re-raised to 425. It folded back to me and with two other players waiting for action in the pot, I decided to 4bet here to 1225 to isolate. Nobody had seen a showdown from me yet and I’m sure they thought I was being active without hands. The other two players folded and the small blind instantly moved all in. I called and he turned over QQd against my black KK. The flop was pretty bad coming K89ddd with the turn being the Th but I faded and the river came the Ac and I was immediately up to 9550 during the first level.
I played a couple small pots like JJ out of position and reraised a guy in position with AK and he set mined me for like 1/4 his stack but I got away cheap. I have been 3betting more this tournament then I have my whole time in Vegas probably. The situations were there for it and my image was probably pretty loose.
My stack was now down to 7500 and the level was 75/150. An active player made it 425 from early position and it folded to me on the button with black KK. I had just 3bet the button the round before. I decided instead of just calling to 3bet here to 1225. Me and the opener were pretty deep. The small blind then reraised me to 3050. He had me covered with ~8500 chips. The first raiser folded and I decided with all the money in the pot already and my stack that the best play was to move in. I did and the small blind had AA and held. So a good start to this tournament was irrelevant. I played really good in that tournament and don’t think I could do much else in that spot.
Today I was supposed to play another $1500 but apparently they sold out early last night and I didn’t get the chance to register for it. I went last night to try to register but no dice. I’m not sure what I will do for the next couple of days leading up to the main event. Maybe some Venetian/Bellagio tournaments. I’ll keep everyone updated. I am definitely ready to make a deep main event run.
$2500 Mixed and $550 Venetian…
Yesterday I played the $2500 Mixed Holdem WSOP Event and busted it. Today I played the Venetian $550. I will talk about hands in both of them.
Mike Caro was at my table along with Ellix Powers (HE CALLED ME WITH JACK HIGH! Guy from the 2004 WSOP limit event.) I actually liked this guy when I watched him in 2004 but after playing with him he is absolutely clueless in limit poker lol. Here’s the video I’m talking about if you haven’t seen it. Ellix Powers Video.. I really miss these old WSOP episodes. They were the best.
Anyways Mike Caro played really weird/different I would say. I don’t like saying people play bad because there are unlimited ways to play poker but I don’t think his style is profitable long term lol. Someone help me come up with a new word that isn’t disrespectful. Let me get onto the hands.
I was down from my original 7500 starting stack to 6200 early because of a couple limit hands. I was absolutely bricking every hand in limit holdem. AK vs 77 A5cc on a 24cc6xx board vs 88, just missing every hand possible. In the NO LIMIT round utg raised to 150 at 25/50 and I called in 2nd position with AJdd. There were 6 to the flop and it came 88s9d we all checked. The turn was the Js and utg bet 200. I decided to bluff raise here since I didn’t think anyone had an 8 and made it 625. The button flat called (an older lady) and the utg raiser folded. The river came the Ac and I checked to the lady and she quickly bet 2k. I really didn’t think she had an 8 here and I didn’t think she would bet so quickly with QT on a scary board like that. So I put her on air for the most part or maybe AQss type hands. I ended up calling and she turned over AJ and I’m back up to 6600.
The game switched every 30 minutes between limit and no limit and let me say the structure for the limit rounds was pretty crazy. It would be like 100/200/25a in no limit and then 200/400 400/800 betting rounds in limit. If you lost pots in limit you were basically screwed and that’s how my day went.
I’m now down to 4k from losing every possible pot in limit. I hadn’t won one pot yet in limit. Because of this I decided to be more aggressive during the no limit rounds. There was an Internet/aggressive/loose player two to my left who decided to get in every pot I was in. I raised the cutoff with JTo and the button called and the sb Internet kid called. The flop came J94r and I bet 350 and the Internet kid called. The turn is the Js putting two spades up and he leads for 650. I just tank and call and the river comes Qc. He checks and I value bet 875 to get paid by QT or a 9 and he calls and mucks his hand and I am back up to 6600. I really wanted to bet more on the river but I couldn’t imagine him calling me down for a big bet on the river here. My hand is either a jack or an over pair in his mind I would assume. So with that thinking I didn’t think he would pay off a big bet if he thought I was betting aces on the river or a jack. I’m also not sure what type of hands he leads with on the turn but like I said, he either had QT or a 9.
This pot was the sickest limit pot I was involved in during the day. I had JJ vs TT vs Ellix Powers 45dd on a JT5cc flop which was 3bet on the flop. Turn was 8d and river was 3d and I saved a bet just check calling river but I ended up losing a lot in that pot. When we got to the no limit round I only had 2300 but doubled up AKcc in the big blind vs a cutoff raise with AQo to go up to 4700.
This hand is a pretty sick hand involving Mike Caro and maybe this will explain my thoughts on his game. A young player who was a little active raised preflop to 425 in no limit and I called on the hijack with 9Tdd. Caro called in the big blind. The flop came QJ9r and the first guy bet 550. I decided to gamble on this flop and go with my hand. I raised to 1875 with a little more than 2k (I am obviously committed to the pot) and then Caro moves all in from the big blind for 4500 total. The first guy folds and I call and Caro turns over ATss. I am looking in good shape lol. The turn brings a second spade giving Caro more outs (2s) but the river comes the 8c to chop the pot between me and him. Stack is now 5200.
Blinds are 150/300 with betting limits 300/600 in limit and I have the same stack. I am playing VERY tight during the limit rounds. I raise QQ in 2nd position and Ellix Powers calls from the button. The flop comes AK5r which is about the worst flop for me in the world. I checked to him and he bet 300. I know this guy plays very loose so I decided to call again and re-evaluate the turn. The turn is a 9 and we both check. The river comes another Ace and I check to him again. He bets once again and I figured my line looked pretty weak and he would bet his Kings, aces, and possibly every other hand/bluffs and value bets. I called and he tabled A2dd. I don’t mind the way I played this hand vs. that player but I could of folded the river.
I shove 77 and JJ during the no limit rounds and get no calls. Here is one of the sickest hands I played for the no limit part of this tournament. Mike Caro limps in third position as he had done before, the small blind completes and I check with A7ss in the big blind. I have about 3500 to start the hand the blinds are 100/200 I think, possibly an ante. The flop comes 7c8s9s and I flop a pair and a flush draw. The sb checks, I check (planning on check raising Caro) and he checks behind. The turn is the Ah and we both check to Caro again (planning on check raising again!) He checks once again and the river comes the Qd. The small blind bets 550 and I decide to just call. Just how the hand played out I decided I couldn’t get too much value from raising here and I could still be beat. The small blind ended up having 99 for a set and I was down to 2700. I shove 99 over a raise and get back up to 3500 chips.
Back to limit I raise QKo and get 3bet by the older lady on the button and fold on a jack high flop. I am now down to 2600 chips. Ellix limps for 400 and I raise AQo on the button to 800. He calls the flop comes J46r and he check calls my 400 bet. The turn is a 9 and he check calls 800. The 6 pairs on the river and I only have 750 chips and he checks to me again. I can’t beat anything that he calls my river all in with but my hand still has a little value in showdown so I obviously check and he turns over A6o. So he limped in early position with A6 and went to town with it. The very next hand I have A5o on the cutoff and raise all in to 750. The button calls the bb calls. The board runs out 889ddA3 and I fade vs QTdd and xx to go back up to 2500. I’m praying for NL to come quick in 2 minutes.
100/200/25a I shove A3hh for 1925 on the hijack and everyone folds. Very next hand I get KK and shove again for 2450. The sb calls with 99 and I hold 566TK to go up to 5200.
My table breaks and I move to a new table with Internet player scrubbyz to my direct right. I lost one pot and won one pot during limit but my stack is now about 3500. Scrubby opens the cutoff with me and another short stack left to act with 34hh and the small blind short stack moves all in for 2200 with QTo. Scrubby calls and flops a straight and eliminates the player. The very next hand (dead button) scrubby raises the cutoff to 750 (at 150/300/25a) and I shove QJo for my 3500ish stack. I think I have plenty of fold equity and I also know I am well ahead of his range here. He talked before raising the hand about how he might have a better hand than last etc etc.. Anyways the small blind ends up reshoving all in and scrubby folds 78o face up. The small blind has AKo and I lose AT5T8.
That was how my $2500 mixed holdem WSOP event went. Limit poker sucks. Especially 9 handed.
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Venetian Tournament – $550 buyin
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Today’s Venetian tournament I had the same luck. I can say I played very well though. I recognized nobody at my table. I played no showdown poker for the whole first 2 hours. That is what I wrote down at break at least, but I think my whole starting table never got to see one of my hands in a showdown which is pretty strong. I didn’t play any big pots really.
I played in a 4 way limped pot when I was in the big blind with 57ss and I check raised the first limpers 600 bet to 1950 on a 3s4s2d flop. Then I got in a pretty interesting hand when I raised Ah7d on the button and a loose/active Asian kid defended his big blind. The flop came 95hhKc we both checked. The turn was the 7c pairing me up and he bet 500 chips. I called and the river came the 8h. He bet 1600 with a 5k chip and a 100 chip. I have the ace high flush blocker and I wasn’t sure how much showdown value my 7 hand. I didn’t think it had much value so I decided to reraise here. What I like most about my play in this hand is I decided to raise to 5100 using the exact same denominations the kid bet with. So I grabbed a 5k chip and a 100 chip and raised. I think the psychology involved in this is that he already has this amount in the pot (although he only is betting 1600) and it looks like I want him to call since he already has those chips out there. He mucks pretty quickly and I win the pot.
I then 3bet this active guy on the button with 56dd. He made it 575 preflop I made it 1875 and he called out of position. The flop came 932sss and he check folded to my 2300 bet. Those were the most memorable pots I played. I then folded for literally an hour or two until my original table broke and I was moved to a new table. I had 19k at the first break but had no blinded down to 17k at the new table.
It is not my 2nd hand at the new table. I raise 77 on the hijack at 300/600/50a to 1525 and the sb looks at his hand and starts thinking about making a move. I can already tell he doesn’t have that strong of hand with his body language and his demeanor. He decides to move in for 6k more and I snap call. He turns over KTo and turns Broadway on a AJ8QT board. He was snapping his fingers or something on the river hoping he hit but I told him I couldn’t win after the Q hit. He seemed like a foreigner who knows if he has any clue how to play poker, but he didn’t know he turned the nuts. Nice hand buddy. I now only have 10k in chips. 2nd utg limps, 3rd limps, button limps, sb completes, I look down at TT. With about 3400 out there I decide to move all in for 10k total. I think it looks weaker like I’m just trying to steal. The first limper tanks for a little and reshoves his 25k. I’m lovin it. The button tank folds and I turn over my TT and he turns over AJo. I know I am wayyyyyy ahead of his calling range here and was surprised I saw AJo and not like 66. The board runs out 5637….J on the river and I am sent home after losing two coinflips.
It’s pretty insane the action I get. People never think I have a hand. It is a blessing and a curse but I have been using it to my advantage as of late.
Tomorrow I’m either going to play the 2k at Venetian or the 1k Bellagio. I’m not sure which one I feel like playing. I haven’t played a Bellagio tournament yet and I did well there last year, but the Venetian 2k will be a better prize pool and I am definitely due for a big tournament win. Soooooooooooo, you will probably find me at the Venetian tomorrow preparing to win the tournament =).
$1500 WSOP NLH Tournament Summary…
As I said in the last blog I played for about two days in the $1500 WSOP NLH Event #39 before getting knocked out in 33rd place. It started with 2715 players so 33rd isn’t too bad but of course not what I wanted. It’s pretty late and I’m really tired but I will write a summary of the big hands/double ups throughout the tournament. I wrote down a bunch of hands but I will just try to keep it to the significant ones.
I played this tournament fairly tight overall. In the first 3 hours I think I only played about 5 hands. My stack got down to 3700 from my original 4500 and a tight player shoved 1825 in middle position at 75/150. I had 88 in the big blind and thought for a little bit and decided to call. He had AJ and the board ran out 956Q7 and I was up to 5500.
At 100/200 a little while later a solid player who had been active in position made it 600 on the cutoff. I have about 5.2k chips in the big blind. I have him covered by a couple hundred. I shoved 77 from the big blind and he thought for about 30 seconds asking himself if he should gamble. He eventually did gamble with AK and I held on a Q3336 board and was up to 10.3k
I’m going through the hands in my phone right now and I see some hands that weren’t huge pots but pretty interesting. Like this pot: On the cutoff an Internet kid (I believe) made it 525 at 100/200. I looked down at AQo in the big blind and decided to just flat out of position. Him and I both had a lot of chips so I decided against 3betting. The flop came KK8r and we both checked. The turn was the As and I check called 700. The river was a 3d and I check called 2100 and he mucked his hand. 15.1k
Short stack shoves 2900 on hijack at 150/300 I make it 5500 on the button with AKcc the board runs QhTc4c4h5c and I hit the flush to go up to 18.5k
I have 16k stack and I make it 1525 on the cutoff with A3hh. The sb is short and he shoves 3k more. Sucks but I am committed to call here. He turns over AQcc (blinds 300/600/75a) and I river him on a K9254 board and go up to 22k.
I blind down to 18k and get moved to a new table. I raise ATo on the cutoff. The small blind calls 1525 and the bb shoves 8500 more. I was coloring up green chips at the time and asked if I could pay him in green chips if I doubled him up. He gave a kind of weakish laugh. He was also wearing a winnimax patch. With these two variables I couldn’t see how I could fold =) and I decided to shove about 16k more. The small blind tanks and folds AQ he says and the bb turns over 44. The board runs out J63A2 and I scoop a nice pot.
The VERY next hand I raise AKo to 1525 on the hijack and the button (the Asian guy who mucked above and could have been tilted) makes it 4k more. We both have decent stacks. I tank a little bit and shove on him. He tanks for 30 seconds or so and calls with QQ. It comes K6653 and I go up to 50.3k
Two new guys with chips come to the table. One is Angel xxxx (guy who won 2k event from Mexico.) I don’t know much about his play but hes raised a couple pots so far being fairly new to the table. He has about 35k-40k in chips and an Asian guy behind him new to the table has about 100k in chips. Angel makes it 2200 (at 500-1k) and the Asian guy calls. A tightish player shoves 14k total and it folds to me on the button with AKo. I tank and move all in for roughly 50k. Angel says he mucked AK and the Asian guy tanks with 77 (saying he should call and gamble cause his 100k stack isn’t enough lol) The shover has JJ and the board runs AK675. 75k now.
6 Hands left in the night for day 1 and I raise QQ black utg. The crazy Asian guy calls from the small blind 2700. Flop comes AT6ddd and we both check. The turn is the Ah and he bets 3500. I call and the river comes the Qd. He checks to me and I decide to bet 11k. He shows AKo no diamond and mucks. I thought for sure he was calling with an ace here on the river that’s why I bet so much. I was surprised he mucked. I ended the first day as one of the leaders with 84.2k
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DAY 2
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My Day 2 starting table was pretty fun. I had yellowsub to my direct right and Raymond Davis to my left. Everyone was having a good time at the table and the hands went by real fast. We were in the money very quickly.
I actually busted the bubble boy who we told to fold until he made the money. Well he folded down to his last 300 chips. He put his 200 ante in and had 100 chips behind on the button on the ABSOLUTE BUBBLE. For some reason he thought he should commit his last 100 chips when it folded to him on the bubble when he could of lasted one more hand and made the money. Yellowsub raised to 5k and I called in the big blind with J7hh. The board ran out AATJ2 and we checked it down and my pair of jacks knocked the guy out who turned up 62o and never had looked at his hand. It was very weird and shocking but nothing surprises me in these $1500 events.
That table broke and I had chipped up to about 110-120k at this point. Couple hands in to the new table I raise with TT and the big blind (some lag euro/swiss/etc) defends. The flop comes 942 and I cbet and he thinks about making a play on the pot and folds. I can already tell this guy is going to try to make a move on me. The very next hand I raise KJcc in middle position to 5200 at 1k/2k/300a and he flats in the small blind and the big blind flats. The flop comes 966r and they check to me. I cbet 8kish and he floats me out of position. The turn is a 2 and he checks. I was pretty sure he was on air here and decided to fire another bullet and bet 12kish. He shoved all in for 28k/30k total and when I folded he showed 23o. So he’s calling my raise in the small blind with 23o and floating and shoving on two barrels. Immediately after the hand he got up and I told the table he was going to go brag to his buddy on the rail. I watched the guy go up to his friend and start telling him about the hand and laughing about it. It was a sick read by me but I know people just want to beat me in pots I guess. I tried to needle the guy but his English wasn’t so good. I think he got the point anyways.
I was down to about 80k at this point and the euro guy limps utg for 2k, 2nd position makes it 7300, and 3rd position moved in for 14.5k. I had QQ in middle position and made it 23.3k. They both mucked and the shover had 99 vs my QhQs. The board ran out 962ccc47. I raise and cbet another pot and lose and go down to 50k.
I am pretty sad that my stack was 120k and now was down to 50k because this one guy wanted to outplay me so bad with 23o. It was alright though I was still okay in chips and I was now at a new table with chicagocards1. I waited for a good spot and I folded down to 32k. I shoved A2o on the button and was up to 37.3k I then shoved AKo in 4th position and the small blind tank called with TT. I tried to tell him to just muck it (because I wanted a call) and he finally called. I beat his TT on a AKQxx board and was up to 78k at 1200/2400.
One of the best pots for me that I played during this tournament is probably a pretty standard spot but this pot was special to me because I felt I could have gone broke preflop. First hand back from break the blinds are now 1.5k/3k/500 ante and a new player at the table who I have no idea how he plays makes it 7700 utg. Tight Full Tilt Pro Mandy B calls on the button to my right and I look down at AQo in the small blind. I HATE GOING BROKE WITH AQ TO UTG RAISERS. I absolutely hate it. But having said that, there was about 20k out there to pick up and I only had 70k. I tanked it for a while, about a minute, and decided to just call. The big blind called as well. The flop came J97s and we all checked. The turn was the 5s and I decided to rep JJJ. I know that’s reaching but given my tank everyone could tell I wanted to shove preflop but wasn’t sure about it. I decided to bet 9800 into a 30k pot and everyone mucked. I was up to 95k.
Mandy B limps from the sb and I check my option with Q2o. Flop comes QQ7dd and we both check. Turn is the 9h and she check calls 5k. River is the 3s and she check calls 15k. I win the pot and am up to 116k.
Cutoff shoves 32k I wake up with JJ in the big blind and fade vs a7cc on a Q42cc64 board. 171k.
I now get moved to Roothlus’ table and am doing his direct left (which is a good thing.) He ends up busting in a flip and now with the blinds 2k/4k a short stack shoves 37k with 44. I have KK on the cutoff and call. Board runs K357J and I have 212k going into 4k/8k/1k ante with 62 left.
I raise 88c on cutoff with a 240k stack at 5k/10k/1k. The sb calls who I had played with all day and he loved to see flops. The flop came AQTccc and we all checked. The turn was the 7d and they checked again to me. I decided to bluff here and bet 38k. I know the sb sees me as solid and wont call too light here so I am just really hoping the big blind folds as well. He was also a solid tight player and that flop doesn’t have to hit his range really since hes priced in to call with a lot of hands in that spot. The sb folded and the bb shoved. I mucked and was now at 160k.
The blinds are now 6k/12k/2k ante and I blind down to 94k before shoving 34cc under the gun 7 handed and everyone mucks. The table fills in with chicagocards and Brandon Cantu. The first or second hand Cantu shoves all in for 160k. There is 27k out there to pick up. It folds to me on the cutoff and I have AJo. I have 97k and think this is an easy call. I call and Cantu turns over AKss. I believe he’s shoving really wide here and AJo is profitable. If he had 200k or so it would be a tougher spot but I could of probably found a fold. Oh well. I end up not sucking out and bust in 33rd place for $15,300.
That’s about the gist of all the big hands I played and tomorrow is the $2500 mixed Holdem event I will be playing. I’ll keep everyone updated. Night.
Busted 33rd Place For $15,300…
I am dead tired. Two straight days of poker. I played from 2pm til about 1:40am and finally busted out in 33rd place. I made $15,300 for my efforts which doesn’t make me feel any better lol. I played really good and am happy with how I played. I will update more tomorrow (after I wake up today — its 5:30am) with hands and everything from the two days. Going to get some sleep now. Goodnight.